Boas are ovoviviparous, meaning they give birth to live young. Although they have a reputation for being somewhat challenging to breed, the project is still within the reach of amateur owners.
Things You'll Need
- Female boa in top breeding condition
- Male boa in top breeding condition
- Reliable systems of increasing and decreasing temperatures in two cages
- Cage lights and timers
- 4 digital thermometers (2 for each cage)
- Garden mister (optional)
- Hiding boxes or newspaper
- Clean rubber or plastic containers
Instructions
Make sure your snakes are in peak breeding condition, with no parasites or respiratory problems. The female should be at least 3 years old and the male older than 18 months and 4 feet long.
Begin a schedule of feedings targeted at bringing the pair to ideal breeding weight by mid-October, the recommended time for breeding, according to The Boa Page. Feed the female snake heavily for six months before you plan to breed her; if she is verging on overweight, so much the better. She might not eat for up to nine months when gravid, or pregnant, and must have adequate reserves of body fat. The male should be lean, but not undernourished. Two weeks before you want him to breed, stop feeding him.
Use cooling, also known as seasonality, to trigger hormonal changes that encourage breeding. Begin gradually reducing cage temperatures in both the male and female's cages in mid-October until by early December they have reached a temperature of 72 degrees, down from the normal maintenance temperature of about 80. Make sure there is still a "hot spot," or basking area, of 90 to 95 degrees in each cage.
Put cage lights on a timer so the snakes don't have more than eight or nine hours of light a day. This works along with the cooling to create an environment conducive to breeding.
Introduce the male snake into the female's cage the third week of December and monitor the activity. If the male starts flicking his tongue rapidly, it means he has detected the female's pheromones. Mating begins when the male climbs on top of the female and begins to squeeze her. The act of mating itself may take hours; you will know things are under way when the male begins curling and twitching his tail. Don't be discouraged if this doesn't happen right away; it might take some time for the male to begin courtship activity
Check the female for ovulation a few weeks after copulation has occurred. You should see a swelling a little farther back from where you would notice the swelling if she had just eaten. Sometimes there will be a "post-ovulation shed." Babies should be born about four months later, but gestation times can vary greatly, with some lasting eight months.
Remove the male snake and begin slowly raising both cage temperatures back to normal maintenance temperature during the next three weeks. It's particularly important that the gravid female be at the proper temperature, or birth defects or loss of young might occur. Monitor both cages using two digital thermometers for certainty.
Give proper care to the female by keeping handling to a minimum--she will be unusually irritable--and making sure she has a "hot spot" to bask in. Feed sparingly; most gravid boas refuse food entirely. Provide her with places to hide.
Remove newborns from the mother's cage immediately and put each in a separate cage with a water supply and paper towels. They will shed about 10 days later and can then have their first feeding of fuzzy mice.